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When Traynor Ridge Capital had their fund blow up and had sell indiscriminately into the market last Thursday through Monday, I was able to load up on some sweet .28 cent shares. Like Christmas Day.
Anyone else notice the volume on TSNDF (Terrascend) yesterday? Volume EXPLODED. Not much price movement though. Anybody know why volume would increase 600-fold in one day without much price movement?
This is a big deal!! The logjam is breaking. Morgan Stanley is allowing all TSX trades to go through smoothly. Institutions can now trade Terrascend. More MSOs will surely follow.
Thank you Morgan Stanley. 🙏🙏 pic.twitter.com/mXOVGCaEiI
— Jason Wild (@JasonGWild) July 13, 2023
I find it interesting that Altria-backed CRON has publicly announced that the rumors are true, they are indeed exploring sale options, and CURLF is involved.
Then, almost the same day, both Verano (VRNOF) and CuraLeaf (CURLF) file shelfs for $1Billion each.
Something is up. Either CRON is being broken up and split between Verano and CuraLeaf, or there is some sort of merger between the three companies to form a clear TIER 1 winner... I'm not sure.
One thing is for sure: Boris wants that $838 million in cash, with only $30 million in debt. Pot -o-Gold.
But something is up. These companies might know more than Joe Public about whether or not SAFE is going to FINALLY go to the floor for a vote in the Senate.
Who knows?
WHY NATIONAL CANNABIS LEGALIZATION IS STILL A DECADE AWAY
Will Yakowicz
Forbes Staff
Jun 30, 2023,11:20am EDT
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently announced that if he is elected president of the United States in 2024, he would not decriminalize cannabis—let alone legalize it.
“I don’t think we’d do that,” DeSantis, whose home state is the country’s largest medical marijuana market with more than $1 billion in annual sales, said last week during a campaign event in South Carolina.
President Joe Biden isn’t pro-cannabis, nor are any of the other major declared candidates, including former President Donald Trump. Trump’s first attorney general, Jeff Sessions, rescinded Obama-era protections for the industry, and more recently, Trump said that drug dealers should be executed. Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who opposed cannabis legalization during his first bid for president in 2016 and referred to tax revenue from pot sales as “blood money,” said during a town hall on CNN that he would end parts of America’s drug war, but still opposes legalization. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is running as a Democrat and got arrested for marijuana and heroin decades ago, said he would decriminalize weed, but he stopped short at legalization.
If Biden wins the 2024 presidential election, his term will last until 2029. If a Republican wins the 2024 election and gets re-elected for a second term, the earliest a pro-pot president could take the White House would be January 2033.
Joe Biden seemed like the answer to the cannabis industry’s prayers in 2021, but his record is mixed at best. In his lengthy tenure as a senator, Biden was partially responsible for America’s harsh drug laws, and as president, he fired White House staffers who tested positive for marijuana. Yet in October 2022, he pardoned all U.S. citizens convicted of federal marijuana possession and asked the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Attorney General to review “expeditiously” how marijuana is scheduled under federal law.
Since 1970, cannabis has been classified as a Schedule I drug, along with heroin and LSD, a category reserved for narcotics with a high potential for abuse and no medical value. “Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana,” Biden said in a statement announcing the weed-friendly moves last year. “It’s time that we right these wrongs.”
________________________________________
How America Botched Cannabis Legalization
________________________________________
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, told Marijuana Moment last week that he is working with the Food and Drug Administration and the Drug Enforcement Administration “to try to see if we can give the president an answer that’s based on the science and the evidence.” Becerra continued: “Stay tuned. We hope to be able to get there pretty soon—hopefully this year.”
But for the $25 billion state-regulated cannabis industry and the $47 billion underground and unlicensed pot economy, the dream of federal legalization has remained a nightmare. The legal marijuana economy is broken. Thanks to continued prohibition, folks cannot sell or distribute product over state lines and profits are crushed by a punitive federal tax rate created for drug traffickers.
The stock prices of cannabis companies are down 75% since 2020, when the outlook for legalization was positive. After 2022 ended without any significant reform, reality set in: despite cannabis legalization being hugely popular with voters—more Americans voted for marijuana legalization in Arizona (60%) than for Biden (49.4%) and more people in Mississippi voted to legalize medical marijuana (73%) than supported Trump (58%) during the 2020 election—it is not a political priority inside the Beltway.
Morgan Paxhia, who cofounded San Francisco-based cannabis investment firm Poseidon, which has $160 million in assets under management, was lobbying in Washington, D.C. late this spring when he finally accepted that America’s prohibition on pot is not going to end soon. Any hopes that the Biden Administration will remove marijuana from the list of controlled substances is “dead in the water,” according to the politicians and staffers Paxhia met with. “My feeling of federal legalization is that it could be 10 years or more,” he says.
The largest cannabis companies in America, including Curaleaf ($1.3 billion, 2022 sales) and Trulieve, which booked $1.2 billion in revenue last year, have stopped planning for federal legalization. Instead, they’re banking on modest progress. “We’ve been incorrect on all of our previous prognostications and we’re not going to be guaranteeing any timing at this point,” says Matt Darin, the CEO of Massachusetts-based Curaleaf. “These things happen incrementally, and I think the industry needs to be comfortable with that notion.”
________________________________________
Cannabis Laws By State
________________________________________
Curaleaf, which has a $2.2 billion market cap after seeing its stock price drop 41% since last summer, has adopted a strategy focused on state reform, not federal legalization. “We’re not working off of any timelines for these things occurring,” Darin says. “We need to continue to do what we've done for the last 10 years, which is still operate in this state-by-state environments.”
Kim Rivers, CEO of Florida-based Trulieve, now believes that federal legalization will be “incremental” and will take years. She contends that the SAFE Banking Act, which would make it easier for cannabis companies to access the financial system, is the most likely reform to be passed at the federal level during Biden’s remaining term. Rivers, like many other CEOs, does not believe there is enough political capital to usher in de-scheduling or federal legalization right now. “We’re still stuck on first base,” she says.
The same buzzkill mentality is pervasive among investors. Jason Wild, a former pharmacist who launched cannabis hedge fund JW Asset Management ($600 million AUM) and is currently the chair of Canada-based cannabis operator TerrAscend, which has 35 dispensaries across California, Canada, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, laughs when asked if he incorporates federal reform in his business strategy. “We certainly do not model for federal legalization,” says Wild. “And, for that matter, we don’t model for incremental change. It’s a dangerous strategy. From a balance sheet perspective, you need to act like it’s not going to happen.”
Marijuana is still illegal federally for a very simple reason. “Politicians just don't really care,” says Paul Armentano, the deputy director of nonprofit legalization advocacy group NORML. “It's just not on their priority list. If it were, they would address it. They don't because it isn't. It’s simple stuff.”
Over the last 30 years, 23 states have legalized recreational use and 38 now allow some form of medical marijuana, but the Senate has never held a single vote on legislation to decriminalize—or legalize—cannabis, despite the fact that some 88% of the American public believe it should be legal.
As for President Biden’s request for HHS to review marijuana’s classification as a Schedule I narcotic, Armentano says he’s been through multiple re-scheduling petitions, which have all been denied by the Drug Enforcement Administration. The DEA has final approval over any rescheduling petition.
It gets more bureaucratically tangled from there. One of the key benchmarks marijuana must pass is whether it has recognized medical use in the United States. The only acceptable definition of medical utility in the U.S., according to the federal government, is approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “That's the federal government's position: no medical utility absent FDA approval,” Armentano says. “There's not going to be FDA approval of cannabis, at least not botanical raw plant cannabis.”
Founding member of the bipartisan Congressional Cannabis Caucus, Representative Earl Blumenauer, a Democrat from Oregon, believes that legalization being a decade away is “a little pessimistic.” His timeline is within “the next five years,” but having been in public office since 1973, Blumenauer is also smart enough to know plenty of lawmakers are “too timid” to legalize pot and are standing in the way. “The political process has been the obstacle,” says Blumenauer.
Representative Nancy Mace, a Republican from South Carolina who introduced a bill to end federal prohibition in 2021, says she understands the cannabis industry’s pessimism. When asked if she sees a legalization bill—either the Democratic version proposed by Senators Chuck Schumer, Ron Wyden, and Cory Booker or her own States Reform Act—being voted on under the Biden Administration, she is not hopeful. “I don't see that on the horizon,” she says. “If anything, it would be SAFE Banking Act.”
As for the scheduling review, Mace believes President Biden will use it as a “political tool” and will announce a decision closer to the 2024 election cycle. “It’ll be utilized for politics,” she says, “not for policy.”
While there are “key people” who are not “enthusiastic” about cannabis in Congress, Blumenauer believes it is temporary. “We've seen tremendous progress in terms of the movement for legalization and public opinion,” he says. “Sadly, the federal government is going to be the last to get there, but we'll get there.”
https://www.forbes.com/sites/willyakowicz/2023/06/30/why-national-cannabis-legalization-is-still-a-decade-away/?sh=1065fe1a7e4c
I hope they're wrong and it's closer to 5...
Major Marijuana Industry Players Launch Super PAC To Advance Cannabis Reform As 2024 Election Heats Up
Published
12 hours ago
on
June 28, 2023
By
Kyle Jaeger
A coalition of marijuana businesses and advocacy groups has launched a new super PAC that will work to “raise the profile of cannabis as a national issue in the 2024 election and beyond.” And part of the strategy will involve finding industry partners to ask their customers to make “round-up” donations at the point of sale when shopping at dispensaries.
The U.S. Cannabis Council (USCC) announced on Wednesday that it and its member businesses have formed the “Legalize America” super PAC, which unlike traditional political action committees can accept contributions of any size but cannot directly coordinate with political candidates.
“Legalize America is committed to ending cannabis prohibition and advancing expungement efforts and responsible use,” Legalize America Chair Matt Harrell of Curaleaf said in a press release. “We will use all available tools—including scorecards, endorsements and targeted independent expenditure campaigns—to advance cannabis reform, with the goal of creating a prosperous and equitable cannabis industry.”
Despite public support for ending marijuana prohibition, the coalition says that Congress “is stuck in the past,” so the super PAC “will help speed up the nation’s transformation on cannabis reform.”
It will seek to achieve that goal through a combination of partnerships with “high-profile public figures and brands,” and will also look into working with cannabis stakeholders to see if they’d be willing to give customers an option to “round up” their purchases, with the extra change going to the campaign as donations.
“We believe the 2024 presidential election will be a pivotal moment in the fight to end cannabis prohibition,” said Legalize America Secretary Pete Meachum of Cronos Group. “We are laying the groundwork now to use advertising, grassroots engagement, voter outreach and events to keep cannabis front and center throughout the campaign.”
While Legalize America said in a press release that it is the “first” focused super PAC in the U.S. focused on reforming cannabis laws, the owners of a California-based mobile cannabis dispensaries did file paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in 2013 to create a entity called the Legalize Marijuana Super PAC.com. It doesn’t appear, however, that the effort reported raising or distributing any funds following its launch.
Last year, prohibitionist forces launched the Protect Our Kids PAC focused on opposing cannabis legalization.
Right now, Legalize America’s membership overlaps with that of USCC, which counts among its partners ATACH, Canopy Growth, Columbia Care, Curaleaf, Cresco Labs, Cronos Group, Dutchie, Houseplant, Marijuana Policy Project, PAX, PharamCann, Scotts Miracle-Gro and Vicente, among others.
“Legalize America is being launched by USCC and its member companies/orgs but the intention is to create a broad tent that draws in additional companies/orgs along with celebrities and grassroots donors, esp. consumers,” USCC spokesperson Josh Glasstetter told Marijuana Moment on Wednesday.
It’s already become clear that drug policy will be a prominent issue in the 2024 presidential election, with Republican and Democratic candidates weighing in on marijuana reform early in the race.
For example, Democratic presidential hopeful Robert F. Kennedy Jr. shot back at Republican candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) this past weekend over his recent remarks on opposing the federal decriminalization of cannabis.
Former President Donald Trump seemed confused during a recent interview when he was confronted with the fact that his proposed plan to impose the death penalty on drug traffickers would have condemned a woman he pardoned and promoted as an example of a key criminal justice reform achievement during his administration.
At a CNN town hall event this month, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) said that he would “end” the war on drugs if elected, emphasizing the need for a treatment-based approach to people experiencing addiction—while at the same time maintaining that he’d seek to increase enforcement against those who sell drugs.
“We are committed to working with advocates, industry professionals, and community leaders to create policies that support cannabis legalization in a thoughtful and responsible manner,” the site for Legalize American says. “Our primary focus is on promoting federal legalization, expunging records for non-violent cannabis offenses, and ensuring that the benefits of legalization reach all Americans, regardless of race, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status.”
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/major-marijuana-industry-players-launch-super-pac-to-advance-cannabis-reform-as-2024-election-heats-up/
This is very good for the entire cannabis industry!
https://www.fox5ny.com/news/ny-cannabis-crackdown-businesses-raided-illegal-pot-seized
A December 2nd Deadline For Rescheduling Cannabis
A New Law Requires That HHS Delivers Its Scientific Review to Congress
AARON EDELHEIT
JUN 21, 2023
Last week, the cannabis industry was abuzz from comments the Secretary of Human Health Services (HHS) Xavier Becerra made that said HHS aims to deliver to President Biden its recommendation on rescheduling of cannabis by the end of the year.
Industry leaders, analysts and investors mostly scoffed at the news after years of unfulfilled promises and few if any actual accomplishments on cannabis reform by either the Biden administration or leadership in Congress. After a brutal two-year bear market, few of the remaining investors believe anything will be done or accomplished by year end.
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But as I have written before, I have a different opinion. Cannabis for the longest time has been a political plaything at the Federal level. It doesn’t generate the heat and intensity of other issues, so therefore doesn’t really help politicians get elected either way. And if something doesn’t get you elected, it doesn’t become a priority.
Now, however, I think for the first time, an elected leader has in cannabis, a very popular issue that he may need to be re-elected. President Biden will turn 81 in November, and many believe that at his age, he should not run or be re-elected. His recent fall at the Air Force graduation or recent verbal mixups in front of the press do not help counter this view. So, what issue could Biden take leadership of that would make him look young, while simultaneously be popular? The only one I can think of is cannabis.
I wrote about this last October, that I expected Biden to move much sooner than expected on cannabis and expected movement before the 2024 primaries and the HHS secretary’s comments seem to confirm my thesis.
But there is another reason I am confident that we will hear from HHS sooner than expected. It’s required by law.
I’m not sure why this hasn’t been a bigger story, but Congress passed and Biden signed into law H.R.8454, the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Act last year. It was enacted on December 2, 2022. As part of this law, it states the following:
In General.--Not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human
Services, in coordination with the Director of the National Institutes
of Health and the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, shall submit
to the Caucus on International Narcotics Control, the Committee on the
Judiciary, and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee
on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report on--
(1) the potential therapeutic effects of cannabidiol or
marijuana on serious medical conditions, including intractable
epilepsy;
(2) the potential effects of marijuana, including--
(A) the effect of increasing delta-9-
tetrahydrocannabinol levels on the human body and
developing adolescent brains; and
(B) the effect of various delta-9-
tetrahydrocannabinol levels on cognitive abilities, such
as those that are required to operate motor vehicles or
other heavy equipment; and
(3) <<NOTE: Recommendations. >> the barriers associated
with researching marijuana or cannabidiol in States that have
legalized the use of such substances, which shall include--
(A) recommendations as to how such barriers might be
overcome, including whether public-private partnerships
or Federal-State research partnerships may or should be
implemented to provide researchers with access to
additional strains of marijuana and cannabidiol; and
(B) recommendations as to what safeguards must be in
place to verify--
(i) the levels of tetrahydrocannabinol,
cannabidiol, or other cannabinoids contained in
products obtained from such States is accurate;
and
(ii) that such products do not contain harmful
or toxic components.
What does all of this mean? Well, the HHS has to submit a report by December 2nd on the medical effects of Cannabis and the potential side effects. This may not be a requirement to comeback with a scheduling recommendation, but it surely is a deadline for completing most if not all of the research/review that the agency needs to complete.
Read it yourself, here is the link: Text - H.R.8454 - 117th Congress (2021-2022): Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act | Congress.gov | Library of Congress. It is near the bottom, under Title IV.
So, now we not only have the the political need for a scheduling review, the HHS secretary’s comments, but we also have in law a requirement that the HHS has to deliver to Congress its scientific review. And it is less than six months away. Stay tuned, because it is my expectation that we are about to see a lot of fireworks on the Federal front on cannabis before year end.
https://mindsetvalue.substack.com/p/a-december-2nd-deadline-for-rescheduling?r=7v1yt&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Seems it's closer than ever. Like Anthony, I'll believe it when the ink is dry.
SAFE passage Finally?
They always have to add that word HOPEFULLY
Feds Aim To Finish Cannabis Scheduling Review ‘This Year,’ Top Biden Official Tells Marijuana Moment
Upcoming big opportunity for stock appreciation.
CGC TLRY
Just jumped into MRMD today.
Nice research. I will be playing CGC and TLRY for a bounce. like
OGI.
Every cent you put in, goes directly into these wallets while they are depleting your investments, you are being ripped off ! Bullshity
TOTAL COMPENSATION FOR CANANBIS CEOs
D Klein (WEED)—$42 million
I Simon (APH)—$18M
K Schmidt (CRON)—$12.5M
S St-Louis (HEXO)—$11M
Z George (SNDL)—$5M
B Kennedy (TLRY)—$4.3M (2019)
T Booth (ACB)—$5M
B Athaide (TGOD)—$1M
G Engel (OGI)—$628k
Accumulated net losses by Canadian cannabis producers to date (pre-mergers).
— Matt Lamers 🌻 (@matt_lamers) July 6, 2021
TOTAL LOSSES: $12.5 billion
WEED: $3.8 billion
APH: $561 million
HEXO: $701.2 million
SNDL: $714.5 million
TLRY: $1.3 billion
ACB: $4.1 billion
TGOD: $436 million
OGI: $245.9 million
ZENA: $240 million https://t.co/V76nrV9bdL
Trying THCV for the first time.
Super important this week!!
Canopy and Tilray to bottom and find support!
That's a fair assessment given the markets perspective and the history of share price performance. SHWZ may need to add some focus to IR, especially considering the cannabis sector collapse over the last two years. Lots of traders/investors disinvested in cannabis for other sectors with more promise. Two years ago, SHWZ was only an SSO in CO, while now an MSO by adding NM, along with 60 dispensaries either built or in the pipeline and offering some of the industry's best margins. The diamond needs some polish or splash to attract some attention. Perhaps surpassing Cresco's dispensary count will be a catalyst, SHWZ is on the cusp of such a move.
GOOD!! But not in my top 10. Top 15, yes. Not about how the company is run, but purely on a price appreciation, speculation basis.
SHWZ may be the best run cannabis company in the US. Great buying opportunity now at $1.15.
I meant the reason to be green is that ALL the air has been let out and the only direction left is sideways or green.
it must be a reason for GREEN .... there is a reason for RED because coming earning does not look wright .
It will be a big deal if Canopy Growth finishes up GREEN today.
Also could use a green close by Tilray.
Found new support. Higher lows.
Well-run company. Not in my portfolio. Held up nicely.
Medicine Man Technologies Inc
OTCMKTS: SHWZ
I like MRMD as well, for the very reasons you posted. Nice entry point now.
Key Differentiators:
MRMD is one of a VERY FEW companies that are profitable.
MRMD owns most of its own real estate. Most other MSOs did sale/leasebacks
MRMD funds it's growth from cash flows (very little debt)
MRMD picks the right real estate in the optimal locations
MRMD is acquiring companies, whereas other MSOs are now divesting (e.g. Trulieve)
Massachusetts-based MariMed Inc. (CSE: MRMD) (OTCQX: MRMD) posted a profit in 2022, an anomaly among U.S. publicly traded cannabis companies which combined for billions in losses.
CEO Jon Levine and CFO Susan Villare recently sat down with Green Market Report to talk about how the business positioned itself to weather the headwinds under which the national marijuana industry labors and what they think it will take for the broader sector to reach sustainable profitability.
Aside from its home state, the multistate operator has interests in Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Puerto Rico, and is planning significant investments for expansion.
On the financial results from last year, MariMed was one of just a few public U.S. cannabis plant-touching companies that was actually in the black. What made the difference for MariMed?
Jon Levine, CEO, MariMed
Levine: The fact is, our company has been very successful in taking our time, in building this out from cash flow, without having to go borrow money at very expensive rates, or to basically sell the company just to be able to get the money to do this. We have successfully opened all of these (dispensaries, grows, and manufacturing facilities) through family, friends, and through small raises, that then we started producing positive cash flow and income, and gave us the ability over the last three years to continue to grow the business already, without having to go out and raise money.
This year, that gave us the ability to be disciplined, to concentrate on the proper items of making sure our expenses are in line, that we hire the right people.
We have one of the strongest balance sheets within the industry. And we are very disciplined on making sure that we watch for the stockholder value, but also watch our COGS and make sure that we’re not overspending on COGS or other expenses.
Susan Villare, CFO, MariMed
Villare: Tim Shaw, who’s our COO, he’s been with the company as long as Jon, 10-plus years, and knows how to grow cannabis. And so we have kind of that secret sauce with all of his SOPs that he’s put in place, that we’re able to replicate that, state to state.
Jon’s secret sauce is that he comes from a real estate background. His entire family was in commercial real estate. So anytime we’re in a different state, he’s like, “Oh, I have a big building in Bristol, Connecticut,” or “I have another one here in Waterbury.” I’m like, “How do you have buildings every state that we’re in?”
So we own almost all of our real estate, which a lot of folks don’t. (The other companies) did a lot of sale-leaseback (deals), or they pay really high rents (because landlords) say, “Oh, you’re a cannabis company, I’m gonna gouge you because you must make a lot of money selling drugs.”
When Jon started this, he was very thoughtful of the locations. So when he went to Illinois, everyone went to Chicago, but (MariMed) decided to go the southern area, and they got a lot of (customers from neighboring) states that didn’t have cannabis.
When we did the Kind Therapeutics acquisition, it wasn’t like, “Oh, we have to buy the building plus the assets.” We already owned those buildings, no mortgage on it when we got it, a big grow and processing facility.
We’re (also) one of the largest wholesalers in Massachusetts, and nobody knows that. That is, I think, a differentiator.
Are you expecting similar or better results for the bottom line when 2023 comes to a close?
Levine: Just recently we borrowed $30 million from Chicago Atlantic. That gives us all the money to accelerate this expansion (in Maryland, Ohio and Delaware). We’ll have all that completed, including the purchase of the Quincy facility here in Massachusetts.
Villare: We gave guidance, this past earnings (report), of $150 million (in annual revenue, up from $134 million in 2022), which will be our sixth consecutive year of double digit growth, which is great. Our internal plan is higher.
Some people have said, “Are you sandbagging?” And I said, “Maybe, but maybe not.” We shall see. But it is a tough market.
What do you see as the primary hurdles for publicly traded cannabis companies as far as getting to profitability?
Levine: I do feel that everybody is feeling the effects (of the economic downturn). People aren’t spending as much in their baskets when they go to their store. There’s a lot of price compression going on in every state.
Then there’s the fact that a lot of states have not put in the proper controls. New York is a mess. They’ll never have the proper controls. You’re dealing with the illicit market, and (that will) make that market very, very difficult to deal with.
But that happens everywhere. Our biggest competition isn’t just each other. It’s the illicit market.
So we’ve been very cautious about where we go to. We try to be in areas that are going to attract people, destination locations, which means that they’re going to come to us because they enjoy the experience, they know they’re gonna get that high quality product at a good price, and the customer service too. That’s where part of our success has come from.
You’re asking how the industry is going to do. It really comes down to the states that you’re in. I think Missouri is one of the lucky states where they had plenty of growers that the price went up slightly because of the fact that they have adult use and the lowest taxes around. And that’s the reason everybody’s racing over the Illinois border to St. Louis to buy that flower, is for that reason.
But they had an overabundance six months ago, and their prices dropped dramatically, very much like Michigan. Now they’re back up to where they should be.
But we’re never going to get to that illicit market, because the fact is, we all have to pay taxes, and we have to get testing done. The key is getting the message out to the consumer: Be safe, don’t buy the stuff off the street, and not know if it’s laced with something, come to her testing environment, you know that you’re always going to get that safe quality.
How important is federal reform to MariMed’s business plan moving forward?
Levine: Having been in this industry since 2008, I have learned to deal with this banking issue head on. You have to learn how to find the proper bank, and there’s plenty of banking.
Yes, I have had issues where we’ve lost accounts, and we’ve had to jump from bank to bank. But there are banks out there that actually understand that this is not federally legal.
However, I came from the real estate world. And you’d be surprised, I’ve got mortgages that are 10 years old. And people were like, “How the hell did you get that?” It’s about who you know and how you actually understand how to explain what you’re doing – and having the separation of cannabis versus real estate.
Teaching people, that’s the other thing: You have to teach the people that you’re dealing with, that this is not as bad as they think, that it’s not this scary drug that’s going to hurt somebody.
We would love to see free ability to ship flower across state lines. Every one of our locations is very close to an interstate exchange. Why? Because I understand that I had to get these trucks out on the road so I can get everything to each location as easily as I can.
That’s the first thing that I looked at. It was for the future use.
But we’re more prepared today to keep growing at the rate that we know is the right rate. We could have run up to Canada seven years ago and got stupid money and just bought anything that we wanted. And it may not have made sense. That’s why 90% of these people are still in trouble, is that they’re trying to get themselves out of these non-cash flowing operations.
We did everything slowly, purposely. We wanted to make sure that we built each operation out with the same processes, procedures, SOPs, and make sure that they’re running on a positive cash flow basis, very quickly. We don’t want to have a lot of debt carry.
That’s where we’re successful. And that’s how we’ve avoided what a lot of other people have not.
Are there any other state markets that MariMed is thinking about entering?
Villare: Not California.
Levine: We’re not going to the country of California. But we did just apply in the state of Texas, which is the second California. But Texas is very far from being anywhere close to legalization. However, we feel it’s a state that we can prepare for the future.
We are going to be looking at the state of Arkansas, once they get their situation figured out, when they’re going to start taking applications. And we’re going to look at other states that are coming online with limited licenses that make sense to us.
How do you expect most of the public cannabis companies to perform this year?
Levine: On the public side, I probably agree that (2023) is going to be a little bit better (than 2022). I just think that you’re going to see the numbers still having a very large loss, even though there’s more markets coming on and being built out and causing additional revenue.
I just think with that the complexity of the market and the economic effects, people are going to see that the revenues are not going to be as growing as fast.
They’re going to grow for us. They’re going to grow for a few others. But there’s going to be a lot of people in this industry that are going to see tight margins and lower income.
What do you think it will take to see a really significant turnaround towards profitability for most public cannabis companies?
Levine: 280E would help a lot of companies in terms of their tax expense. However, I think that the biggest thing is some banking reform that would give the ability to borrow money at real rates, and not at these astronomically garbage rates.
It’s ridiculous. I can walk down the street and get robbed for less than I get from these bankers in the cannabis industry.
Villare: Yeah, the interest expense is telling. If companies are creative, the cost of capital is less than 10%. But for others, the rates are 15%, 18%, and there’s a pile of balloon payments.
So I do think we’ll probably see some more consolidations out there. I think there’ll be states and people made some big bets that they’ll be doing some divestitures from.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
https://www.greenmarketreport.com/exclusive-interview-marimed-leadership-talks-path-to-profitability/
Look for US cannabis company Schwazze to continue expanding its empire in New Mexico. That’s the skinny from Beacon Securities analyst Russell Stanley, who updated clients on the stock and company on Monday and reiterated a “Buy” rating.
https://www.cantechletter.com/2023/06/schwazze-is-a-buy-in-cannabis-stocks-says-beacon/
Cannabis Investment Club is back, baby!!!!!!!!!
Cannabis Investment Club is back, baby!!!!!!!!!
Larger U.S. names are doing a good job of reversing from recent lows.
https://www.newcannabisventures.com/american-cannabis-operator-index/
U.S. Index must hold $11.88
Tilray screwed the pouch on Friday,
How's it going?
New banking bill coming..."Democrats Plan to Take Another Pass at Cannabis Banking Bill":
MARCH 7, 2023
"A Republican Senate aide confirmed that Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Wyoming Republican, is co-sponsoring a marijuana banking bill with Democratic Banking Chairman Sherrod Brown of Ohio. A cannabis industry source said the bill could be made public later this month."
https://www.route-fifty.com/public-safety/2023/03/democrats-plan-take-another-pass-cannabis-banking-bill/383711/
$CWBHF-"Elon Musk Takes Twitter To Another Level: Greenlights Paid Ads For Cannabis & THC Products In US":
February 15, 2023
https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cannabis/23/02/30922774/elon-musk-takes-twitter-to-another-level-greenlights-paid-ads-for-cannabis-thc-products-in-us
"Twitter’s New Marijuana Advertising Policy Still Doesn’t Allow Ads For Marijuana Product Sales":
February 15, 2023
Here is a good primer for newbies about where the industry is headed...
"New GOP Congressional Panel Chairman Plans To Grill FDA On Lack Of Hemp And CBD Regulations":
Published 9 mins ago on January 12, 2023
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/new-gop-congressional-panel-chairman-plans-to-grill-fda-on-lack-of-hemp-and-cbd-regulations/
First trading day of 2023 and MariMed (MRMD) is up 17.92%. I hope this is a precursor of things to come!!
I think it's the ISRAELIS who were lobbying to keep weed schedule 1 so they can keep pretending to be cutting edge cannabis scientists while the rest of the world watches.
I think the politicians (both Democrats and Republicans) are being relentlessly lobbied by the private prison industry as well as the pharmaceutical industry, both of which will be negatively impacted by federal legalization.
Exactly. No one should be looking at these "politicians" as idiots who are just bumbling around. They should all be seen as foreign infiltrators who are occupying our government in order to weaponize it against us, because that is exactly what they are.
Hemp Batteries $ALYI is engaged in a long-term hemp battery initiative. Hemp has demonstrated potential to offer a very cost-effective superior material to traditional graphene in the production of super capacitors. Side by side comparison of hemp solutions to lithium battery solutions have shown favorable results for the potential of hemp. ALYI's hemp battery initiative has benefitted from notable industry leadership in the hemp super capacitor research field.
This loser of a fake president was practically pounding the table about signing the MORE act and this is what he does. Pathetic
"British American Tobacco : BAT invests in Charlotte's Web, a leading US producer of hemp extract wellness products":
11/14/2022 | 06:11pm EST
https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/BRITISH-AMERICAN-TOBACCO-4001163/news/British-American-Tobacco-BAT-invests-in-Charlotte-s-Web-a-leading-US-producer-of-hemp-extract-wel-42312972/
"BAT invests in Charlotte’s Web, a leading US producer of hemp extract wellness products":
14 November 2022
https://www.bat.com/group/sites/UK__9D9KCY.nsf/vwPagesWebLive/DOCL6PSP#
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